lunes, 31 de agosto de 2015

Faience was a favored material for Egyptian amulets, which were magically protective charms worn or carried on the body. Amulets were sewn or wound into mummy wrappings to protect the deceased from otherworldly perils. The small size of amulets meant that the were particularly well suited for production in clay molds, which have been found during excavations.

This amulet in the form of the winged goddess Isis was originally sewn onto the linen bandages of a mummy. The goddess’s wings spread across the mummy’s chest, embracing and protecting the deceased in the afterlife.

The pectoral was made in three pieces. A mold was probably used for the body, and the two wings made with either molds or templates. The delicate feathering on the wings perhaps was impressed by hand with the flat side of a blade before firing.

Accession Number: 86.16.3This alabaster figurine is of a nude woman reclining on her left side. Her left arm, which would have supported her body, is missing. The right arm is extended along her side, with the tips of her fingers resting lightly on her thigh. Faint bands at the woman's neck indicate creases; the subtle folds of flesh along the right side of the torso emphasize the full curves of her figure. Reclining figures are common among Greek terracottas, and the appearance of the posture in Mesopotamian sculpture may reflect the influence of Greek terracotta manufacturing centers along the eastern Mediterranean. The majority of Greek terracottas of this type are male, however, as are reclining figures depicted in Greco-Roman funerary reliefs. In Mesopotamia, the opposite is true: whether the figurine is fashioned of alabaster or terracotta, the subject is usually a woman. While the treatment of the body and graceful pose of the present sculpture undeniably betray Hellenistic influence, the creases at the neck, the drilled navel, and the voluptuous form are elements of an established local tradition.

Cosmetic Jar in the Form of a Cat, Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 12, ca. 1991–1783 b.c. Egyptian Egyptian alabaster (calcite) with inlaid eyes of rock crystal and copper; H. 5 1/2 in. (11.4 cm) Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 1990 (1990.59.1)... Egyptians are credited with the domestication of a number of animals, including the cat, which first appears in painting and relief toward the end of the Old Kingdom (ca. 2300 B.C.). This cosmetic jar is the earliest known three-dimensional image of a cat. Egyptian artists were very observant of the world around them, and their representations of animals are detailed and lifelike. In this jar, which is essentially a statuette, the sculptor demonstrates a keen understanding of the creature's physical traits, giving it the alert, tense look of a hunter rather than the elegant aloofness seen in later statuettes. The impression of readiness is enhanced by the inlaid eyes.

The eyes are made of rock crystal with drill holes at the back that were filled with pigment, creating a startlingly lifelike impression. The eye sockets were lined with copper, which corroded to form a heavy green rim. The body of the cat was hollowed out and would have held some sort of scented oil or unguent.
Met Museummetmuseum.org

Isis-Aphrodite is a form of the great goddess Isis that emphasizes the fertility aspects associated with Aphrodite. She was concerned with marriage and childbirth and, following very ancient pharaonic prototypes, also with rebirth. Elaborate accessories, including an exaggerated calathos (the crown of Egyptian Greco-Roman divinities) emblazoned with a tiny disk and horns of Isis, heighten the effect of her nudity.

Figures depicting this goddess are found in both domestic and funerary contexts. Popular already in the 3rd to 2nd centuries B.C., they continued to be made in Roman times. Dating technology places this piece in the Roman period, probably about AD 150, and the long narrow face and rather dry expression do not contradict such a date.

Description

Fragment of papyrus written with black ink with demotic legal document dated year 24 of Ptolemy III Euergetes I (inferred from the name of the priest of Alexander in the surviving dating formula): part of 7 ll. on recto, part of 3 ll. on verso. Withdrawal after judgement by Sentaes daughter of Hakoris, concerning a lot of unbuilt land in Armant (Hermonthis). Restore Herieus the elder son of Harsiesis as scribe

From: Abydos, Egypt Date: 1st Dynasty, around 2950 BC
This small piece of ivory is about the size of a matchbox. The picture on it shows King Den, wearing the cobra crown of Egypt, hitting a person from an Eastern country, who has a pointed beard and long hair. The hieroglyphs on the right say 'first occasion of smiting the East'. This could mean that King Den had won a battle against an eastern country.
On the other side of the label is scratched a picture of a pair of sandals. The label may have been attached to the bottom of King Den's sandals so that every time he took a step, he was trampling on his enemies.

Nebsen, the scribe of the royal treasury, and his wife, the songstress of Isis, Nebet-ta, wear the elaborate wigs fashionable in the later Eighteenth Dynasty. Their jewelry, painted yellow to imitate gold, was varnished to make it shine; the varnish has darkened with time. The inscription tells us that the statue was made for the couple's tomb by their son, Weserhat. In fulfilling this filial duty after their deaths, he had them depicted in the fashion of his day, rather than that current under Thutmose III, when they actually lived.
XVIII Dynasty Brooklynmuseum.org

The representation is bordered by narrow margins on the sides and broader margins above and below. There are no inscriptions, although the borders have been smoothed as if intended to be inscribed.Tutu is represented in the shape of a sphinx, striding to the right. He wears a wig with a fillet and a uraeus, and a ceremonial beard. On his head is the andjety-crown: ram's horns with two ostrich feathers, a sun disk and two uraei crowned with sun disks. At the back of his wig is a ram's head, facing left. His tail is a cobra. Small knives protrude from his paws. The god Bes stands on the right-hand side, naked, with a panther's skin, a tail, beard and feather crown. He brandishes a sword in his right hand, his left hand rests on the thigh. The crowns worn by Tutu and Bes partially overlap the upper border.A winged sun disk with uraeus is represented in the upper left hand corner. Its wings are in a straight angle.The raised relief is finely detailed.

This intriguing carved stone object is a pestle. The heavy round bulb at the base is designed for grinding or crushing food, while the handle has been carved in the form of an elongated bird, with a long neck curving into a stylised head.

It was found in Papua New Guinea, in the Pacific Ocean, which has one of the oldest food cultivation traditions in the world. Around 10,000 years ago, humans in this part of the world began to move away from living as roaming bands of hunter-gatherers. They learnt to grow crops, which meant new tools had to be invented, both for farming and for food storage and preparation.

In Papua New Guinea, the staple crop was taro. Taro was one of the earliest crops to be cultivated by humans, and is still grown in Papua New Guinea today. It has an edible root, as well as leaves that are eaten as a green vegetable.

The pestle’s long neck meant it was probably too delicate to be used regularly and its bird-shape suggests it may have been used for pounding food on special occasions.

sábado, 22 de agosto de 2015

This apotropaic wand shows a procession of protective deities. Such a wand would have been used in rituals associated with birth and were perhaps used to draw a magical circle around the mother and child. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

domingo, 16 de agosto de 2015

Papyrus from the Book of the Dead of Nakht

From Thebes, EgyptLate 18th Dynasty, 1350-1300 BC

Agricultural scenes

Nakht was a royal scribe and overseer of the army (general) at the end of the
Eighteenth Dynasty (about 1550-1295 BC). His Book of the Dead is a
beautifully illustrated example.
This papyrus shows Spell 110, a series of addresses to deities who dwell in
the 'next world', specifically in the Field of Offering and the Field of Rushes.
The deceased was expected to undertake agricultural work in the Field of
Rushes.
The vignette evolved from a map of the Field in
the earlier Coffin Texts. It shows areas of land surrounded by water.
Nakht is shown with Thoth at top right, with the
balance and feather of Maat (referring to the
Judgement Scene). He then paddles his boat across the Lake of Offerings where
two mummiform deities stand before a table of
offerings. Nakht is also shown worshipping the Heron of Plenty. He is shown
pulling flax, reaping, and ploughing below. The boat of Wennefer (a name for the
god Osiris), shown with a head of a snake, is moored
in a channel of the water at the bottom. Three deities of the ennead (group of
nine gods) are shown bottom right.

The portly profile of the king identifies this as a work from late in the reign of Amenhotep III. The back pillar is in the form of a djed-pillar, a hieroglyph symbolizing stability. The inscriptions associate the king with the Theban god Amun-Re and it has been suggested that this statuette was dedicated as part of Amenhotep's third Heb-Sed, a rejuvenation ceremony celebrated in year 37 of his reign.

The king wears a shawl draped over his left arm and a fringed tunic beneath. Innovatively, the sleevelike piece of the tunic that hangs over the right arm has been pleated. This detail represents the beginning of a trend that would become universally accepted during the reign of Akhenaten (ca. 1349–1332 B.C.) and continue long after.

This stela is one of many dedicated to various deities revered by the workmen of Deir el-Medina. Aapehty was the deputy of the gang of workmen who cut and decorated the royal tombs. He was the son of the foreman Paneb, who was accused of several crimes. A list of charges against Paneb is written down on the Salt Papyrus in The British Museum.

On this stela the god Seth is shown in his classic form: as a man with the head of a composite creature that Egyptologists call the 'Seth animal'. This strange animal was thought to personify storms, confusion, even evil. Nonetheless, Seth could also be worshipped as a beneficent god, as in this example. Aapehty may have had a connection with the god since his name means 'great of strength' which is one of Seth's epithets. The cult of Seth was particularly strong on the Eastern Delta border of Egypt. The Nineteenth-Dynasty kings with the name Sety, who came from that area, are named after Seth.